Prince of Heart
by The Black Rose445
Summary: Dirk is the Prince of Heart, though he does not act like it. He dislikes politics and prefers to spend all his time in the training grounds with the students. But there is one thing he absolute refuses is to allow; a Knight. But when Her Imperious Condescension orders him to take on a guard, he can't refuse her wishes. And he may just end up liking this new arrangement...
1. note

This is the master list and power domain reference for characters in this story. They will likely be referred to by one of their titles or by name. Plz refer to this before asking questions. This will be updated if I decide to add Calope, Calborn, or anyone else I forgot.

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**TIME**

"Prince of Heart" Dirk Strider

"Knight of Time" Dave Strider

"Rogue of Heart" Nepeta Leijon **The Huntress**

"Maid of Time" Aradia Megido **The Seer**

"Witch of Time" Damara Megido **The Handmaid**

"Mage of Heart" Meulin Leijon **The Disciple **

**LIGHT**

Rose Lalonde, "Seer of Light"

"Knight of Mind" Latula Pyrope **The Legislacerator**

"Seer of Mind" Terezi Pyrope **The Neophyte**

Aranea Serket, "Sylph of Light" **The Spider (The Marquise)**

"Thief of Light" Vriska Serket **The Scorpion (The Mindfang)**

**SPACE**

Jade Harley, "Witch of Space"

John Egbert, "Heir of Breath"

"Maid of Space" Porrim Maryam **The Dolorosa**

"Sylph of Space" Kanaya Maryam **The Rainbow Drinker**

"Rogue of Breath" Rufioh Nitram **The Summoner **

"Page of Breath" Tavros Nitram **The Tamer**

**BLOOD**

"Knight of Blood" Karkat Vantas **The Sufferer**

"Seer of Blood" Kankri Vantas **The Signless**

"Bard of Rage" Gamzee Makara **The Young Highblood**

"Prince of Rage" Kurloz Makara **The Grand Highblood **

**HOPE**

Jake English, "Page of Hope"

Jane Crocker, "Maid of Life"**The Batter Witch**

"Thief of Life" Meenah Peixes **Her Imperious Condescension **

"Witch of Life" Feferi Peixes **The Princess**

"Bard of Hope" Cronus Ampora **Dualscar**

"Prince of Hope" Eridan Ampora **The Orphaner**

**DOOM**

Roxy Lalonde, "Rogue of Void"

"Mage of Doom" Sollux Captor **The Psiionic**

"Heir of Doom" Mituna Captor **The Helmsman**

"Page of Void" Horuss Zahhak **The Engineer**

"Heir of Void" Equius Zahhak **The Executioner**

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Time and heart - **Time**

Light and mind - **Light**

Space and Breath - **Space**

Blood and rage - **Blood**

Hope and Life - **Hope**

Void and doom - **Doom**

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Please note that, because of the large number of characters, only major pairings and important characters will be tagged.


	2. Dirk

Okay guys. I may be taking a little too much on right now, but since I'm going to keep Night of Fate a DaveKat story, I decided I would write another story to satisfy all of your DirkKat needs. I will continue on that story, for all you following it, and I will also continue the AC fic I have on going.

Please be patient. Updates may take awhile.

DISCLAIMER! we all know how this goes...

Please read, review, and enjoy!

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You sit down at your desk, sighing and pulling at the garbs that you wear as a sign of your status. It was unbearably uncomfortable- in your opinion- but necessary to keep appearances. You are, after all, Dirk, the Prince of Heart, strongest of those with the powers of Time, rivaled only by your younger brother Dave, the Knight of Time. To you, status is just on paper. It didn't really matter. But to the posh people that live around you, it means everything, and you have to honor that, and live up to your title.

Sighing again, you return to your quarters and change your prince garbs for those of a knight. These were the ones you would much rather wear. You're a fighter, not some laid-back politician. When you need something done, you do it yourself. A quick jump out the window of your room and a brisk walk later, and you're in your favorite place in the whole city- the Knight's Training Grounds. You can see your brother training with the younger students, and you inwardly smile. _He'll become a fine Mentor one day,_ you think fondly.

It doesn't take you long to find the quartermaster and get paired up with a partner. You move through the sword selection, trying to find one that balances well, and watch who you assume to be your partner do the same. He's crouching down, so you can't tell exactly how tall he is, but he looks young. You take up one of the swords, a practice katana, and move to the rink. Not long after, the boy you saw looking at the swords hops over the fence opposite to you, holding a twin-sided scythe. You raise an eyebrow in surprise. It takes a lot of finesse to use a weapon like that, but he looks confidant. He's a native- you can tell by his grey skin and stubby horns peeking through the top of his hood- and is wearing knight's garbs with the symbol of Blood, a bleeding slash from right shoulder to left hip. You still can't see his eyes, and-though it doesn't unsettle you- it does make you feel slightly perturbed. Most natives are proud to display their rank through the color of their eyes and blood, but this one seems to be _hiding _his.

You don't get much more time to think on it as the quartermaster calls you to into attention and introduces you to each other. It wasn't all too necessary for him to call out your name, but you are interested in learning the name of who you'll be fighting.

"Prince of Heart, Dirk Strider, against Knight of Blood, Karkat Vantas."

Your eyes widen in surprise, and you're glad that you have your shades to hide it. Vantas? As in the Signless's- strongest of the powers of Blood- family? You're surprised you've never heard of this one.

Your thoughts are once again cut short as the quartermaster calls fight, and Karkat initiates. He has just as much skill as you assumed he would have, and much more strength then you first gauged from his slender form. You hold back on your strikes, wanting to gauge just how good his combat skills are in comparison to his siblings.

To say that you are impressed would be an understatement. He is, by no means, as skilled as you or Dave, but he is much more skilled than his brothers. You would almost say that he's on par with –in terms of agility- with the Page of Hope, but it also would be an unmerited comparison because of their different skill sets.

Regardless, he's about as hard to hit as water. You refrain from using your flash-step because you know that the speed would probably end the fight quickly and you are having fun, but as the fight continues, you find yourself having to flash short distances just to avoid his attacks. They're so clean- so precise- you don't doubt that he will be an excellent weapon's master. But it's getting late, and you will likely be expected at the banquet tonight. Flashing in a quick series of strikes, you put him on his back and hover over him, blade of your training sword centimeters from his throat. You see a flash of bright, candy red from beneath his hood before the quartermaster calls the win and you jump away from him.

"Thank you for the fight," you say honestly. You see the corners of his mouth twitch up into a smile, and he bows. Returning the sword to the weapons-house, you abscond before a herd of novices tries to get advice from you. You are running late as it is, and you still have to clean up.

Flashing the rest of the way to your quarters, you take a quick shower and change back into your prince garbs. You're subconsciously reaching for your katana before you stop yourself. Bringing that into the company of **Her Imperious Condescension** was like asking for her to cull you on the spot, if she even bothered to do that. She could just have her drones cull you and return to her merry meal with a pool of your blood spreading across the tile. And you're pretty sure that Strider's weren't meant to be bloody pools creeping across the floor.

You walk into the banquet hall and try to ignore the whispers that follow you until you sit down. Of course you cause a stir. A high caste member of society, walking into a meal un-attended? To most, it's preposterous. Even the Signless, one of the lowest representatives (kinda) of a caste has two attendees- a grey-cloaked shorty with his hood up on one side, the Disciple on the other. **Her Imperious Condescension** has both the Handmaid and the Batterwitch standing behind her, and her sister, the princess, is being accompanied by the Young Highblood. But you never feel comfortable having a person standing behind you when you're eating. Even the guards know better.

You dismiss their gossiping and turn your attention to **Her Imperious Condescension.** You sense she is about to say something, and are ill at ease about what it may be.

The first words out of her mouth confirm your horrors.

")(ey Dirk!? W)(y don't you )(av-E an E-sscort lik-E th-E r-Est of us?!"


	3. Karkat

Here you go, guys. Chapter two. Read, review, enjoy! Btw, those typing quirks were really fun.

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You hide a snicker at the Prince of Heart's expression when **Her Imperious Condescension **calls him out for not having an escort. The man's usually stoic face was a combination of surprise and fear. Hilarious. You hear them bantering back and forth, reasons why and why not, but your attention is on Meulin, who is signing something to Kankri. You don't quite catch all of it, but Kankri apparently does.

"Meenah, Dirk," he calls in his usual, holier-than-thou voice that he normally uses during his seminars at the Academy. Most of the table is startled at his easy-going use of **Her Imperious Condescension**'s first name.

"I have a pr9p9sition f9r y9u. As a simple teacher for the Academy, I surely d9 n9t need tw9 esc9rts t9 events as y9u said f9r me, d9 I Meenah?" he asks. You frown at where this is going, and frown a little more when Her Majesty agrees.

"And Meulin, 6eing the Disciple, cann9t p9ssibly leave my side." Kankri turns to Dirk as he says this. "S9, Prince 9f Heart, w9uld it 6e agreeable f9r my y9unger br9ther, Karkat, t9 6e y9ur esc9rt f9r a time? At least until y9u find a m9re permanent 9ne. If y9ur reputati9n precedes y9u, then y9u will 69th likely pr9fit from this."

You try to protest, but Kankri quickly shooshes you, causing you to scowl. The hall is quiet as the Prince and the Queen decide. **Her Imperious Condescension **is the first to speak.

"W)(y not?" Her smile causes a shiver down your spine. "I don't sea w)(y the Sufferer s)(ouldn't be Dirk's escort. I t)(ink it would be good for t)(e bot)( of 'em." Dirk gives a slight smile and nod in agreement, and you can feel panic bubbling up in your stomach. After all, this was the same man you spared in that afternoon, and damn did he give you the beatdown. Kankri spares you a momentary glare before returning to the debate. Before you can start ranting, however, **Her Imperious Condescension **claps her hands once, signaling that the banquet is over, and begins to walk out of the room.

"T)(at settles it, doesn't it? Knig)(t of Blood, you are now Prince of )(eart's escort. Tak-E good care of )(im, would you?" With that, people began shuffling out of the banquet hall. You, however, stand in momentary paralysis set on by the horror of being the escort of a prince not even in your Power. A soft hand pulls you out of your shock. It's Kankri.

"I kn9w y9u d9n't like this, Karkat," he apologizes, his sympathy reflected in his expression. "But it's f9r the 6etter. I saw 9nly darkness if y9u stayed next t9 me." You nod, knowing that he was only doing this to give you a better chance. That's what he always did.

You watch Kankri and Meulin leave, Meulin smiling and waving back at you. You turn around and jump in surprise when you almost run into a solid, purple-clad chest. Glaring upward, you feel the usual scowl pulling at your features. You open your mouth to give him a piece of your mind, but he speaks before you can.

"You're that kid I fought earlier in the training rink. Damn fine moves you had there. Needs some polishing, but damn fine moves." You stare at him in shock. This is the first time the two of you have actually spoken, and you're completely caught off guard at the deepness of his voice. It's so... foreign. Your mouth opens and closes as you try to come up with a proper retort, but your mind is far too scrambled for that. You settle for a "shut the fuck up" and turn to leave, but he catches your shoulder.

"Don't you want to know where we're supposed to meet up tomorrow?" he asks mockingly.

"AND WHY SHOULD I WANT TO KNOW THAT, NOOKSNIFFER?" you snap back aggressively. He laughs.

"Look, kid, I don't want to do this anymore than you do. But then again, I also prefer not to be a dead, bloody sack of meat on the floor for pissing of the Condense. So let's just try this and if I can't stand you anymore than you can apparently stand me, I'll find someone else. Meet me at the training grounds tomorrow at eight and we can talk this over, okay?" You scowl at him, but nod.

God, you already want to kill him.


	4. Dirk II

New chapter guys! Hope you enjoy!

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You look up at the clear sky, sighing. The training grounds were still empty of even the 2nd rank students who have morning training, for that you are grateful. The sun is barely over the horizon, telling you that you still have an hour until your new escort shows up.

Planting your feet shoulder-length apart, you close your eyes and breath deeply, planting yourself, before you begin the first series in your kata. It's a sword kata, but still effective without the instrument of death normally associated with it.

The first series flows into the second, then the third, and before you notice you're on the sixth series and someone is watching you from the gate of your circle.

It's Karkat.

You pretend to not notice him, continuing to run through the katas until you finish the last, holding the last stance for a little longer than necessary to catch your breath. Finally, Karkat clears his throat loudly to catch your attention.

"Nice moves," he says, almost sounding embarrassed. You chuckle, running quickly through your cool-down stretches as you walk towards him.

"Maybe I'll show you how to do them sometime, 'eh? But for right now, we have to go see Rufioh." You hop over the fence and start towards the Gardens.

He frowns. "The Summoner? How come?" he asks, trailing behind you.

"Just have to check up on someone. Normally I would do this on my own, but since I'm gonna be stuck with you for awhile, I might as well introduce you to him." You two are in front of the heavy oak door of the garden Greenhouse, the place where most of the pets reside unless their owners call for them. Very few people keep their pets by them at all times, especially those with particularly large ones. You knock on the door once.

"Introduce me to who?!" Karkat demanded.

You decide not to answer him because the door is already swinging open and a native in a wheelchair you don't know with large, almost attractive horns is beckoning you inside. You look to Karkat, confused.

"Is your brother in, Tav? The Prince here needs something," Karkat chips in. "Tavros, this is Dirk Strider, Prince of Heart. Strider, this is Tavros Nitram, the Page of Breath and the Tamer, and brother of Rufioh."

You bow to him politely, and he does the same- or, at least as best he can in the position he's in.

"Y-yeah, Rufioh's in," he stutters out. You wonder if it's normal or just nervousness.

He leads the two of you into a corner of the darker corner of the greenhouse, where they keep the nocturnal pets during the day. The Summoner was there, bandaging the broken wing of one of the young Darkleer Bats he was raising. Tavros bid you two goodbye as his brother set the bat in one of the hives and turned to greet them.

"Ah, Dirk! I was wondering when you would come back! You here to see Sawtooth?" He asks, leading them back to a more well-lit area.

"Good to see you as well, Rufioh. I hope the lil' guy hasn't been a pest." The three of you stop before one of the Hive-clusters, this one shaped more like a tree then the bat caves. You pull out an old, worn walnut-whistle and blow through it carefully. You notice Karkat and Rufioh wincing at the high-pitch sound, but your attention is on the beautiful song that is sung in response to your call.

Sawtooth, your pet, is a Flame Griffon, about your chest height at it's shoulder. He's kind of special amongst his kind for his spectral, steel-colored markings. Normally a Keeper wouldn't even consider raising such a strangely marked bird because they would usually draw away from the pet's beauty in the eyes of most nobles. Rufioh wasn't any normal Keeper, and Dirk found the creature before anyone could try and take it simply for the feathers.

Sawtooth peers past you, first at Rufioh, then at Karkat. He walks up to the young native, cocking its head to the side in interest. You watch them greet each other, then Wonderweiss pads back to you, humming happily.

_I like him is_ all you get from your pet before he returns to his Hive. You relay this to Karkat, who laughs.

"Yeah, I kinda figured that. Since you introduced me to him, should I introduce you to Crabdad?" he asks, smirking. You frown but nod.

Karkat produces his own whistle, a short bamboo one that creates a low, warm tone. You hear an indignant "scree" from one of the ground-level Hives, and your eyes widen in surprise at the beast that comes forth.

Crabdad is taller than Dirk _when it's slouching_, and just about towered over Karkat when he goes to greet the kid. You hear happy clacks and purrs from it before he guides it over to where you are standing. You hear Karkat say something in his native tongue (the native language of almost all Alternians), a seemingly meaningless group of hisses and clicks. You think you hear your name somewhere in it, but it's missing the vowel, making it sound more like "Druk" with an exaggerated "k" and a rolled "r." Crabdad lowers its head to look you in the eyes, then begins to click and mess with your pale blond hair. It sounds happy. You offer it a bro-fist, which it happily reciprocates with the side of it's claw.

"He likes you," Karkat says. Your eyes don't leave the white-husked crabbeast, but you swear you can hear a smile in his voice.

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If any of you feel like drawing a fanart with Dirk and a Griffon, I will love you forever.


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